Latin America

• Monday, April 27th 2009 - 14:00 UTC

  Vaccination of the Americas campaign launched in Paraguay

  

  Paraguay’s president Fernando Lugo and the Pan-American Health Organization, PHO, launched Sunday a new edition of the “Vaccination in the Americas” week which has the purpose of vaccinating 30 million people against a wide range of diseases that still ravage the region.

• Monday, April 27th 2009 - 13:40 UTC

  Port costs inhibit cruise industry warn Punta Arenas operators

  

  Port authorities from Punta Arenas in the extreme south of Chile anticipate a complicated 2009/10 cruise vessel season which could mean 30 to 40% less visitors and a considerable drop in the number of calls.

• Monday, April 27th 2009 - 12:01 UTC

  Ecuador’s Correa re-elected; US dollar to remain as currency

  

  President Rafael Correa of Ecuador claimed re-election victory Sunday minutes after the polls closed on Sunday, calling his apparent win “a day of joy” in which “we have made history”. He was quoted saying he would keep the US dollar as the country’s currency.

• Sunday, April 26th 2009 - 08:45 UTC

  Mexico swine flu spreads overseas - Alert in airports

  

  Mexico has raised the probable death toll from an outbreak of swine flu to 81, including 20 already confirmed.

• Saturday, April 25th 2009 - 07:16 UTC

  Swine flu outbreak in Mexico kills 68, infects hundreds; schools closed

  

  At least 68 people have died and hundreds of others have been infected in a viral outbreak in Mexico suspected to have been caused by a strain of swine flu. The World Health Organization thinks the virus may be behind the deaths in Mexico since mid-March.

• Friday, April 24th 2009 - 10:45 UTC

  United States and Latin America

  

  The Economist under the heading “The charming neighbour” says President Barack Obama’s incursion into Latinamerica at the recent summit in Trinidad Tobago was “overall a success”. But is also asks whether the new mood will survive the worsening recession in Latin America is unclear. And is spite all the discussion about Cuba, The Economist believes that in practice, “drugs and security are likely to overshadow all other issues in the Obama administration relation with Latinamerica. Furthermore “trade and immigration”, particularly with Mexico, have become dividing issues.

• Friday, April 24th 2009 - 05:09 UTC

  Ecuador firm on its sovereign bonds sharp discount buy-back scheme

  

  Ecuador will not change its offer to buy back 3.2 billion of defaulted debt at a sharp discount (70%), and appealed to investors to be mindful of its economic problems, Finance Minister Elsa Viteri said in a letter to bondholders, according to press reports from Quito.

• Friday, April 24th 2009 - 04:56 UTC

  UNITAS Gold celebrates 50th anniversary of multilateral maritime exercise

  

  Representatives from eleven countries participated in the opening ceremony of UNITAS Gold on the 50th iteration of the annual multinational maritime exercise which takes place off the coast of Florida until May 5.

• Friday, April 24th 2009 - 04:49 UTC

  Correa and his revolution poised for easy re-election in Ecuador

  

  Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa is poised to easily win re-election on Sunday, according to the latest public opinion polls which show he has about 50% support and way ahead of his seven rivals.

• Thursday, April 23rd 2009 - 13:39 UTC

  IMF more upbeat about Chilean economy than the locals

  

  Chile's GDP will likely grow a marginal 0.1% on the year in 2009, recovering to a 3% in 2010, said the International Monetary Fund in its April World Economic Outlook released Wednesday. The IMF outlook is more optimistic than local analysts' outlook who forecast the Chilean economy will contract 0.5% this year.